Flat Inside a Fog: The Cat That Was a Dog

From the initial keystrokes of Bablicon's third album, it's obvious that this Chicago-based trio is moving in new directions. Conceived as a double album, A Flat Inside A Fog, The Cat That Was A Dog is an epic construction unlike any they've made before. Recorded on 16 track at Chicago's Truckstop Audio, A Flat is distinctly higher fi than both In A Different City and The Orange Tapered Moon. And Bablicon's progression shows up not only in the truer sonic quality, but also the dense and wide-ranging composition that flies all over this album. Previous Bablicon albums paired improvisation with loosely structured songs, but A Flat was meticulously composed beforehand. With a heavier emphasis on piano based composition, the band displays a newfound virtuosity and core tunefulness that get bathed in live electronics and improv sizzle. Their multi-faceted barrage of sound touches on styles ranging from contemporary classical and jazz to electronica.